GAZA CITY At Gazas 'Happy Land Zoo,' donkeys earned their stripes and became zebras. The two made-in-Gaza zebras have become symbols of life under the Israeli blockade, a local attraction and a bit of a joke.
'The zebras are locally manufactured,' says zoo director Mahmud Barghut, grinning from ear to ear.
'We take a donkey and draw stripes on it.' The operation takes two days and entails the use of sticky tape and French-made hair colouring, which Barghut says works best for this kind of job.
The two imposters stare at visitors with sad eyes from a tiny, fly-ridden cage. 'We couldnt afford real zebras,' says Barghut.
Since the Islamic Hamas movement seized power in the Gaza Strip in 2007, the Palestinian enclave has been under a blockade, with Israel and Egypt only allowing in humanitarian and basic supplies.
Hundreds of smuggling tunnels have since been built under the border with Egypt, to bring in anything from weapons to cars, petrol and toys.
But the tunnel imports can be costly and Israel drives up the prices by regularly bombing the smuggling tunnels.
The zoos lion and two ostriches were brought in through the tunnels when they were babies, but a zebra would be prohibitive.
'It would have cost us 30,000 dollars,' says Barghut. A donkey -- a ubiquitous feature of Gazas streets -- can be had for just 700 dollars.
Smuggling wildlife into Gaza came to international attention in March 2007 when EU officials who were monitoring the Rafah border crossing with Egypt at the time caught a Palestinian woman trying to sneak in three live crocodiles.
The toothy reptiles, each about 40 centimetres (16 inches) long, were taped to the woman beneath a loose fitting robe.
The woman, who came under suspicion for appearing inordinately fat, told border guards she intended to sell the crocodiles to a Gaza zoo.
In a sealed-off, overcrowded territory of 1.5 million people that has little in the way of entertainment, the zoo on the outskirts of Gaza City is highly popular. 'Theres nothing but the zoo or the beach,' says Barghut.
But visitors from outside may well find 'Happy Land' a sad place.
Other than the would-be zebras, lion and two ostriches, theres only a camel and some birds.
Their cages are tiny and their food is strictly rationed. The lion gets 10 kilogrammes (22 pounds) of meat per day, about half of what Barghut said is the recommended amount. The animals are often sick and the medicine they need is unavailable in Gaza.
'If there was an animal protection group here, they would have us all arrested for mistreating the animals,' says Barghut. 'I tell myself that its a sin not to take care of them properly, but I try to do my best.'There used to be other animals, including a leopard and monkeys, but they were killed during Israels devastating military offensive at the turn of the year.
'Most died of thirst or hunger. For three weeks, we couldnt approach the zoo. An (Israeli) tank was posted by the entrance,' Barghut said.
'I called emergency services but they told me they werent even able to help people.' About 1,400 Palestinians were killed in the 22-day offensive.
Barghut says he loves the lihey believe its real,' says Barghut.
But four-year-old Yara al-Masri isnt fooled.
'I know its not a real zebra, but its a pretty donkey,' she says, laughing. -AFP
